Moonfire
by blueroguewolf
Summary: Remus is reunited with an old friend during OTP shes working with the order now and finding out they might have more in common than he thought please forgive my terrible review! rated T for later chapters
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own anything harry potter related, we have J.K. Rowling to thank for that. The only thing I own is the character Vestra.**

Chapter 1: An Old Friend

_It was running through the woods. Branches snapped and gave way as he blazed a trail through their thick and grabbing fingers. Perfectly balanced, his paws felt the pungent earth between his padded toes as he ran. Scents carried on the wind told him of the terror of the smaller animals, concealed in the cover of the brush, dreading his coming. The moon floating overhead cast ominous shadows through the branches above him. The beast below stared at it, longed for it, as he passed underneath never letting it out of his sight. Its tongue lolled out panting, and saliva dripped from his muzzle, still caked with earth and warm blood. Pine needles grasped and clung determinedly to his matted fur. Bursting suddenly into a clearing, the animal stopped and stared at its master, enveloped in pain and longing. The moon, in all of its foreboding glory, stared down mockingly at the terrible and ruined form beneath it. Its unfeeling presence loomed malevolently down upon this pitiful creature it controlled, if only for a short time. Instinct and the most primal of yearnings reared up in the poor beast as all the desire and frustration welling up inside it surfaced in its gut and rose to its throat. In a flood of incomparable release it gave a cry into the night, expelling all its disgust and desperation into one long, horrifying howl._

Remus Lupin awakened in the early morning, in his bedroom at number 12 Grimauld Place. "It was only a dream," he told himself. "Only a dream..." Disoriented and dizzy, he forced himself to remain very still, like a rabbit in hiding, until his eyes adjusted to the light. His heavy, labored breathing soon returned to normal, but his body continued to shiver even though the sun pouring through the window warmed his face and bed. When he finally opened his eyes he remained staring upward at the ceiling and allowed the spell to pass completely before making any sudden movements. Raising himself up slowly, he mopped the sweat from his brow with the sleeve of his night gown.

The house was completely quiet as he descended the stairs, wobbling slightly, on his way towards the kitchen. His mouth was as dry as if it were full of cotton. Not trusting himself to do any magic yet, he took a glass down from the cabinet by hand and filled it with ice cold water from the tap. As he turned toward the dining room he spotted someone sitting at the table already eating breakfast as if they were starving. He instinctively steered away from the unwanted company, and was going to return quietly to his bedroom when he realized that the person eating so ravenously at the table was a woman. Flaming red hair indicated that it was probably not Tonks as she seemed to prefer pink, but neither was it Ginny nor Mrs.Weasly either. Curious, he entered the dining room with his water and watched the woman, who was beginning to slurp her bowl of what appeared to be porridge, rather loudly. Despite of the knot of tension and nervousness he still felt in his stomach, an amused smile crept over his face as he recognized her.

"I didn't hear you come in," He said, feeling slightly disappointed when she wasn't startled at the sound of his voice.

"Well, I didn't care to awaken the Black family's longest winded matriarch," the woman replied with her mouth full. Lupin smiled again and pulled up a chair beside her.

"You know, we were expecting you to show up sometime last night like everyone else," he said eying her closely.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I was detained. Don't worry," she added catching the anxious look in his eyes. "I've already talked to Dumbledore and he filled me in on the meeting." Lupin looked at her quietly for a moment before making an attempt at small talk. "It's been awhile Vestra, you look good, healthy… I mean," He said in a friendly manner. It wasn't a lie either; the woman had flaming red tresses that almost made the Weasly's hair look dull by comparison. Her robes were an earthy brown, giving her the impression of a stick burning on one end. She had an oval shaped face and large yellowish-brown colored eyes. There were worry lines etched on her forehead and around her eyebrows, but no one could have contested that she was still a very beautiful young woman.

She looked up from her food with an amused expression on her face. "Funny," she said, giving him a knowing look "You look like hell." Lupin was suddenly painfully conscious of the fact that his ordeal earlier that morning had left him pale and shaky. His prematurely graying, brown hair fell lifelessly into his eyes and his night gown was just as patched and decrepit as the rest of his clothes. Neither of them spoke for a while as the silence between them stretched on awkwardly. She began chewing her food loudly, and then suddenly she asked:

"So, everyone made it here alright then?"

"Yeah, Harry and the rest of us made it back without any problems, unless of course you consider Moody trying to make us fly halfway around the world a problem," He said with a grin.

"Well then, at least Harry's safe, that ought to put Black in a considerably decent mood," she snorted derisively, before finishing her last bite of porridge.

"I don't understand why the two of you can't get along, I swear, sometimes you're alike enough to be related," he commented frowning slightly.

"Have you _actually_ met any of Black's relatives?" she asked. Lupin grinned as she scrunched up her nose, apparently disgusted by the idea. "Also, Mr. Lupin," she added in a very teacher-like tone of voice. "Unless I spontaneously sprout fur and a tail, I respectively ask that you not compare me to Mr. Black in _any_ shape, form, or fashion."

Lupin didn't press the matter any further, but thought it wiser to launch straight into the narrative of last nights events before the other occupants of the house awakened and interrupted them. The woman listened distractedly as if she was bored, but did not interrupt him or comment on anything he said. Luckily, he had just finished telling her about Sirius answering Harry's questions, when Mrs. Weasly entered the room yawning widely.

"Oh," she said, slightly surprised to see anyone in the dining room. She eyed the stranger sitting next to Lupin curiously. "I wasn't aware anyone was awake yet. Did you just come in?" she asked the woman.

"Molly, I don't think the two of you have met yet," Lupin said standing "this is Ms. Vestra McGivens. Vestra, this is Molly Weasly, house matron and cook extraordinaire."

"How do you do?" Molly asked, eying the young woman dubiously. "We were expecting you last night."

"So I've heard," Vestra replied. The woman eyed her empty bowl forlornly, as if staring at it would cause another helping of porridge to suddenly appear.

"Well," Mrs. Weasley continued, undaunted by the woman's uncommunicative attitude. "Remus, you'd best go get some clothes on everybody'll be down for breakfast soon," she said. Vestra perked up considerably at the sound of breakfast, and Lupin hoped she'd be polite to Molly long enough for him to get dressed.

Remus immediately regretted having to ascend the staircase, feeling quite sure that he was going to be ill before he reached the last step. He was still feeling light headed and unsteady, but with the support of the guard rail he was finally able to make it to the top. When he made it into his bedroom he closed the door and his eyes while the dizziness passed. He inhaled sharply and opening his eyes, began to rummage through the contents of his closet. Being that there was not much in it, it didn't take long. Soon he extracted a white shirt and green sweater that was substantially less threadbare than the rest of his wardrobe. He quickly brushed his hair and was in the process of applying toothpaste to his toothbrush when he stopped suddenly with his hand in midair, reminiscing.

Remus had been pleasantly surprised when Dumbledore told him that Vestra would be joining the Order as a field member. He hadn't seen her in six or seven years and was shocked to realize how much she was beginning to resemble her mother. She'd only been to Grimauld Place once before, while the rest of the Order had been out on business of their own. Sirius, having been once more left behind, was the only person left to greet her. Judging by a couple odd bruises on Sirius and an owl from Vestra apologizing for some extensive furniture damage, it had not been a pleasant meeting for either of them. Vestra hadn't returned to Grimauld Place since.

As if in response to his train of thought, Lupin was interrupted from his musings by a series of gruff and threatening shouts, one voice was unmistakably Sirius'. Lupin threw the bedroom door open and almost ran headfirst into Bill Weasly, who was making his own way down the hall with Ron and Hermione behind him.

"What's with all the noise?" Hermione whispered loudly. "They'll wake up Mrs. Black!" No sooner had the words left her mouth, than the distinctive shrieks of Mrs. Black filled the house. A litany of curses and insults ricocheted off the walls, informing every visitor as to what the Mistress thought about their presence in her house.

"Please shut her up!" Ron grimaced, clasping his hands over his ears. Remus hopped gingerly down the stairs two at a time, followed closely by the two Weaslys and Hermione.

With an enormous effort on the parts of Bill and Remus, Mrs. Black was finally subdued back into silence. The four cautiously entered the dining room to see what had started all the commotion. The scene was a tense one. Sirius and Vestra glared at each other from opposite sides of the table, while Mrs.Weasley glared at them both in turn, her red curls quivering with wrath. Fred and George had apparently apparated downstairs to see what was going on, and each looked extremely hopeful that Mrs.Weasley would soon be yelling at someone else for a change. Remus, sensing a blow up, moved to speak to Vestra before Molly got a chance.

"I don't know what happened between the two of you, but this has got to stop," he said frowning and sounding very teacher-ish. Vestra didn't respond, but continued to stare steadfastly at Sirius. It was Sirius who spoke first.

"She started it! I was just…"he began, but Mrs.Weasley cut him off.

"I don't care who started it, the two of you should be ashamed of yourselves," Molly fumed, her voice raised as much she dared. "Honestly, bickering like a couple of children, and with Harry trying to sleep too," She said, aiming a particularly annoyed glance at Sirius. Sirius immediately looked down guiltily, and swallowed whatever excuse he had been preparing. Far from looking repentant, Vestra merely sat down and began eating a piece of toast that she'd apparently been working on before Sirius had come into the dining room. Deciding he didn't want to know what had happened, Remus tried to think of something to talk about to change the subject and lighten the atmosphere. Bill beat him to it.

"It's good to see you again Vestra, have you been busy?" Bill asked with stressed politeness, his freckles moving slightly as he offered her a courteous smile. The woman cocked an arched eyebrow in his direction but continued to eat her toast. "We used to go to school together, you were in Charlie's year though," he explained pleasantly. The other occupants of the room turned to listen to their conversation. Bill was quite the diplomat; he must have had years of practice with his mother, Remus thought.

"Erm, yeah," she said, brushing crumbs off of her hands. "I uh, began working for the ministry right after school, you work for Gringotts now huh?"

"Yeah, it's not very fascinating though. What do you do for the ministry?" Bill asked, taking a seat next to her and ignoring the fact that everyone was staring at them.

"Bit of everything really. Usually I'm an ambassador for interspecies communication, but I also qualify as a substitute teacher and a junior auror in training. I'm pretty much a ministry gofer," she was very nonchalant about her professions, but more than one person was surprised at her list of credentials.

"What subject do you teach?" Remus interjected, curiously.

"Defense against the Dark Arts," she replied giving him a quite deliberate smile. "Though you shouldn't flatter yourself professor, you hardly inspired me to become a teacher." she added, practically smirking.

"Professor?" Hermione asked with a quizzical expression. "You're too old to have been one of Professor Lupin's students, aren't you?"

"Yeah Moony, how is it that you two know each other?" Sirius interrupted, casting a contemptuous glance in the young woman's direction.

"You don't think Dumbledore hires just anybody for teaching positions do you? Don't be silly; professor Lupin had some teaching experience before he taught at Hogwarts." Vestra said, directing her answer at Hermione and ignoring Sirius altogether. "The year before I went to school, Mr. Lupin was my tutor. Naturally, he emphasized on DADA," she said giving Remus a slight nod and a smile.

"Does that mean you'll be teaching this year at Hogwarts?" Hermione asked, with a note of skepticism in her voice that indicated that she wasn't convinced about the young woman's abilities.

"No, but that's not from lack of Dumbledore trying to get me the position. The ministry has appointed someone from within their own ranks for the job," She replied with a sour look that closed the subject. Then looking down at her watch, she stood up abruptly, oblivious to the questioning looks from the group. "I have to be going," she announced to no one in particular.

"What? So soon?" Remus asked, also standing.

"I was supposed to meet Mad Eye here around breakfast time to brief him on some things, but it appears he's as irresponsible when it comes to being on time as I am.

"I'll walk you out," Remus offered. Vestra offered him a kind smile and grabbed another piece of toast off the table before putting on a light traveling cloak.

"Thanks, It was nice to meet everyone, well almost everyone," she said with a pointed look at Sirius.

The sun was a decidedly nice change from the stuffy darkness of Grimauld Place. The two strolled down the steps chatting amicably. When they reached the street Remus stopped, fixing Vestra with a questioning stare.

"What?" she asked, automatically on the defensive.

"I have to ask, what happened between you and Sirius last time you visited?"

"Nothing worth mentioning," she replied, thrusting an errant strand of hair behind her ear.

"That's a relief. I was afraid that he might've hit on you or something." Remus didn't meet her look of surprise, but stood examining a bird perched on a nearby tree. "I probably should've warned him that not all women are susceptible to his particular brand of charm. Though, he wouldn't have believed me anyway," he said with a shrewd smile that would've rivaled a Cheshire cat.

Vestra laughed quietly before replying. "I suppose twelve years in Azkaban would make anyone desperate."

"That's not what I meant. Anyway, I'm sure you've got a very nice boy waiting for you to get off of work," he said, grinning mischievously.

She wrinkled her forehead slightly, looking uncomfortable about the direction the conversation was taking. She answered him anyway. "I'm afraid I don't have much time for boys Professor, nice or otherwise," she said seriously.

He started to say: "I'm not a teacher anymore you don't need to call me prof…" but she cut him off.

"Why did you quit teaching?" she asked, quite obviously pleased at the opportunity to change the subject.

"Oh, well someone let the particulars of my condition slip out to the public," he said frowning.

"So? Dumbledore knew you were a werewolf when he hired you."

"I didn't want to take advantage of Dumbledore's generosity. He has enough troubles without adding werewolf phobic parents to the list," he replied with a sad smile.

Vestra watched a car go past before continuing: "Seems to me that Dumbledore likes a fair bit of trouble, or at least he thrives on it. I doubt he would've hired you if he thought he couldn't handle a few whadya call 'em? 'Werewolf phobic' parents. So, what have you been doing since Hogwarts?"

"Just a couple odd jobs here and there." He sighed, pulling a twig off an overhanging branch, and twisting it between his fingers.

"Let me guess, you still feel the need to be honest about your 'condition.' Not exactly a smart way to go about keeping a job."

"People aren't stupid Vestra, they'd find out eventually. It's better to be upfront about it," he said patiently, as if he were explaining quantum physics to a toddler.

"I think you give people too much credit Professor, you always did," she said. "Or too little," she added reflectively. Then, without another word she gave him the briefest of hugs, took a quick look around, and dispparated with a quiet pop. If he was surprised at her abrupt departure, it didn't show. Remus merely turned around, walked up the stairs and back into the gloom of Grimauld Place.

With his stomach growling from lack of breakfast, Remus entered the kitchen to find it almost deserted except for Sirius who was sitting at the table drinking a cup of tea. Sirius looked up as he came in, an impish smile instantly materializing on his face.

"You didn't tell me you knew her," he stated with mock indignation.

"You didn't ask," he replied, helping himself to leftover eggs and toast.

"I suppose I can't blame you though, if I knew someone that good looking I'd wanna keep her to myself too. Still, seeing as how I'm not in a position where I could even meet a woman, you could be a little less selfish…" Sirius rambled in a teasing tone.

"What? Sirius, there's nothing going on between me and Vestra! For crying out loud, she was ten years old the first time I met her!" Remus interrupted him, blushing and at the same time, making an attempt at what he hoped was a very intimidating look of outrage.

"Well mate, she sure as hell ain't ten anymore," Sirius laughed, apparently pleased to have received such a reaction from a normally even tempered Remus. Still chuckling, Sirius downed the rest of his tea, clapped his friend on the shoulder, and left him alone in the kitchen with his memories.

**There you have it. I hope someone out there likes it, please review and tell me if I should continue :). I realize that for some people this story may have gotten off to a boring start but please bear with me. This is my first Remus inspired fic and I felt that I needed to make some things kinda clear in the first chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I own nothing. J.K Rowling owns it all, except the plot and the character Vestra. **

Thank you for your patience. I hope this chapter is a little better than the last one.

Chapter 2: Memories

Remus Lupin is lost in his memories…

**16 years earlier**

"Smile!" Peter said cheerfully.

"Take the damn picture Pettigrew!" Moody growled.

"Sigh…."

CLICK

"Well that's a good one everybody." Peter chirped, grimacing slightly to see that the Moody in the photo had begun to enthusiastically make rude gestures at him.

The group quickly began to disperse as everyone returned to their own business. The meeting had run rather long and they were all of them anxious to get home, except for Moody. He remained with a few stragglers peering glumly out of the darkened windowpane. He was grumbling quietly to himself while Frank Longbottom and Remus Lupin stood behind him unsure as how exactly to approach him.

"Well? What do the pair o' ya want? No sense bein' modest," Moody barked without turning around to look at them.

"Oh, well…" Remus started uncertainly. It always disconcerted him a bit to hold conversations with Moody's back. Though he couldn't see it, he was positive that he could feel that unsettling eye watching him through the back of Moody's head. "Frank and I thought that you might want a copy of tonight's photograph."

"Humph" Moody said by way of reply. "I don't need no blasted picture to remind me who my mates are" He snapped turning around quickly.

"'Course not," Frank said evenly. "I just thought that since you liked the last picture of the gang so much, you'd like this newest one too." Alastor Moody took the photo and looked at it silently for a few seconds before shaking his head as if he were shaking loose some old memory.

"If it's gonna be that important to ya Longbottom, fine I'll take me a copy," he said placing the picture in his coat pocket, and with a great deal of muttering and mumbling to himself, Moody headed toward the door. Just before he reached it, he turned around.

"Oh er.. Lupin," he said. "Dumbledore would like a word with ya before you leave." With that he ambled out of the room, his wooden leg slightly scraping the floor.

"He looks down, what's the matter with him?" Remus asked Frank.

"There should have been more people in that picture. I know how he feels but, Dig missing, and Marlene killed. Bones dead too for all we know…" Frank looked across the room to where Alice stood waiting for him. "I have to be glad we haven't lost more friends to the Death Eaters."

Remus knocked again and cautiously poked his head through the door. "Dumbledore?" he asked. "Moody said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes come, sit down." He quietly finished the scroll he had been reading and rolled it up tightly. Then, putting on an entirely different face, he turned to Remus. "How is the job hunting going?" he asked brightly. Remus blushed, only slightly to his credit, and examined his sleeve.

"Not well," He confessed. "I was thinking of taking out an ad," he added unconvincingly.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled like the Fourth of July.

"I have heard of a job that might suit you, if you're interested."

_Why does he ask questions to which he already knows the answers?_ Remus wondered.

"You could refer to it as a mission rather than a job if you prefer. It requires some delicacy. No doubt you've heard about Marlene McKinnon?"

"I know that she and her entire family were killed by Death Eaters, but I didn't know her personally. I've never really even met her actually. I never saw much of her husband and she's never been at any of the meetings that I know of. I _do_ know that Moody was a good friend of the McKinnon's."

"Yes," Dumbledore said smiling to himself. Thomas, Marlene's husband, and Moody were very close friends. Her work for the Order kept her away a lot. She did actually come to a meeting once," he mused. Regrettably, it was the day before full moon and you were unable to attend. Life's funny that way don't you think so?"

"Sure," Remus replied, not at all sure why Dumbledore found this peculiar.

"Remus I believe that it's important that you know a few things about the McKinnon's." Dumbledore said abruptly. "First, and probably most important, they are not dead." Remus let his mouth hang open. "Second, they are in hiding. Third…"

"Whoa wait! Slower…"

"I only had one point left…"

"Well then, start back at point one! They're alive?"

"Yes, and they need some help, that was my third point. The Death Eaters were intercepting all of the info that Marlene was gathering at the ministry. Perhaps it would have been wiser to have placed more people in the ministry. Oh well, hindsight!" He said cheerfully. "Nonetheless, after the Death Eaters made their first assassination attempt, Marlene asked me to move Thomas, their daughter, and her to an undisclosed, muggle location until something else could be worked out. Was all that sufficiently slow for you?" Remus suddenly felt very tired.

"Yes it was. How were the Death Eaters intercepting Marlene's information?" Remus asked.

Silence.

Not to be put off by Dumbledore's lack of an answer, Remus decided to ask him a question that had been bothering him for some time. "Do you suspect an informant?" he asked quietly, not even sure that he wanted to know the answer.

"I didn't ask you here to ponder the hows or whys a spying operation can fail, The McKinnon's need your help and are willing to pay you for your services, _if_ you are interested," Dumbledore replied, successfully evading the question.

_Damn. He's good._ Remus thought. "Yes, of course I'm interested but what about…you know, my…" Remus faltered. I imagine that that would be a good subject for the two of you to discuss tomorrow, during your interview though I'm perfectly confident that something can be worked out between the two of you," Dumbledore replied with that ever-annoying eye twinkle.

"An interview? You can get me an interview as soon as tomorrow? Remus asked shaking his head in disbelief. It was too good to be true, the idea that he could be working again as soon as tomorrow. Barring the fact that he had no idea what kind of job it was or what was expected of him. Or the fact that he hadn't the foggiest clue as to how his prospective employers would react to his "furry little problem" once a month. Still, Dumbledore wouldn't have mentioned the job if he thought being a werewolf would hurt his chances and besides, the prospect of having a job again filled him with delight. It also helped that whatever kind of job it was, it would benefit a fellow member of the Order, even if they were in hiding. Remus, in his excitement began thinking out loud.

"All this time the McKinnon's have been alive. Moody must be a good actor. I've been completely convinced."

"No, Alastor really can't act at all. He doesn't know. You and I are the only two people outside of the McKinnon family who know that they're alive."

"What?" Remus stared at Dumbledore in disbelief. "But…but this doesn't seem fair! Why can't you assign Moody to help them?"

"No it isn't fair, but Alastor's skills are needed here, not in seclusion. Besides, Marlene asked for you specifically twinkle twinkle.

Remus cocked his head to the side. He looked thoroughly perplexed. "Me why?"

"You went to school together I believe. Of course she would've been a few years older than you and her name hasn't always been McKinnon…"

Remus turned a distinct shade of red despite himself. He _did_ remember a Marlene from his years at Hogwarts. Of course she had been a leggy, beautiful, Ravenclaw in her seventh year. Being in fourth year at the time, he had been slightly enamored with her. He held out one last hope that this was a completely and utterly different Marlene than the one he remembered. Unfortunately, one look at Dumbledore twinkling like the North Star crushed every last one of his hopes on that point. Inwardly, his conscience was debating. For some reason the idea of merely seeing Marlene Maybeetle… McKinnon now, filled him with adolescent fear and nervousness.

_What is wrong with me?_ He thought. _I'm a perfectly mature individual I can handle a situation such as this. So what if I had a crush on her in school, we're completely different people now and…and…My word she did have nice hair._ He mused. _And when the sun caught it just right… No, no mustn't think like that. She's grown and married and she's had a kid! Yeah maybe she put on some weight, let herself go…Remus Lupin you are an ass. _

The only result of his internal quibblingwas that Dumbledore received a very amusing 2 ½ minutes of watching Lupin quickly shift his emotions and eventually, drop his head down in defeat.

Remus heaved a heavy sigh. "OK I've made up my mind. I'll go and see the McKinnon's tomorrow," he said all of this with a good deal more confidence than he actually felt. "After all what's the worst that could happen?" despite his optimism, he couldn't bear to think of the alternative: not working AGAIN.

"Excellent. Although I believe a good many things worse could and will probably happen. And by the way it's McGivens now. They're in hiding remember so it's important that their identities not be exposed. Here I shall give you the address…"

It was a warm sunny day at the beginning of May, and Remus Lupin looked just like any other muggle strolling through the neighborhood with his patchy green sweater hanging over one shoulder. It was particularly warm for this early in the morning and strands of his mousy brown hair clung to his forehead. There was something about the neighborhood, it was peaceful and quiet the kind of place he could imagine her living in. Judging by the quality of the local plant life, it did look like everyone on the block was a championship gardener. Things probably got pretty tense around here during a garden show. Beautiful flowers as far as the eye could see, all except for one house. That's right! Dumbledore had warned him that she wasn't much of a botanist, more of a liability than an asset really when it came to Herbology. Not that she didn't have a lot of flowers like everyone else, it's just that they were all in various stages of neglect and decay. This must be the place he thought miserably. Not the miserable that depresses and causes ulcers mind you, more the type that gnaws at you when you know you haven't a choice. He stood for some time staring at the front door in contemplation. It had an absurd little iron gargoyle (doing what Remus assumed was some sort of primitive dance) as a knocker.

_This is Crazy!_ He thought._ What am I doing loitering at her door frowning back at a ridiculous little gargoyle knocker trying to decide whether or not I'm going to knock? _

Suddenly, to his horror, the door began to open on its own accord. He quickly glanced around for some bit of shrubbery he could launch himself behind. Unfortunately, there was nothing in launching distance, all the neighbors plants were a safe distance away.

_Damn it,_ he thought irritably. _Why couldn't you take more pride in your landscaping!_

"Hi," said an attractive woman from the doorway, as if nothing strange were going on. Though granted, she was probably not contemplating covering herself in a protective veil of undergrowth.

"I er…" _How to explain, say something…_

"What were you doing standing out here for so long? I was watching you from the kitchen window." she pointed to the largest, most obvious window on the house.

_Damn Damn. _"Examining your er… garden," he replied, albeit a little lamely. It was her turn to be embarrassed, she blushed right to the tips of her dark auburn hair. They both began to laugh, nervously at first, but Remus felt decidedly much more at ease.

"You must be Remus. It's been a long time. I bet you don't even remember me," she said, flashing a white and perfect smile. Actually, he remembered her a little too well for his own peace of mind. She had barely changed at all since Hogwarts. Same Luxurious auburn hair, same long legs, same beaming smile, and if she had a kid he couldn't tell by looking at her figure. Remus suddenly became highly aware of his appearance. What must he look like to her? He knew that he at least _had_ changed since school. His monthly transformations took an even greater toll on his adult body than they had when he was young. He knew he was pale, and thin, and even a little sickly looking. She looked him over twice but her smile never wavered in its intensity. "You look so…grown up from how I remember you," she said.

"You look wonderful." _What the hell kind of reply was that! You idiot now she'll know that your nothing but a drooling pathetic loser. Wrong reply! Idiot, Idiot…_

"Thanks. Won't you come in, or do you and the gargoyle need a little more private time together?" she said grinning. He smiled and entered the house quickly, unsure if standing outside conversing was a good idea. What were the chances that they could be being watched?

The inside was far better looking than the rotting excuse for a garden might imply.

"Your home is very nice," he said staring indiscreetly at a vase that looked to be easily worth more than all the money he had ever made in his whole life.

"Thank you. Shouldn't let the garden fool you eh?" My, but she was a lot more mischievous than he remembered her.

"I'm sorry. I hope I didn't hurt your feelings. Really, it's not so bad…" simultaneously they both glanced out of the nearest window to observe the depressing state of what was originally a rose bush. They each cracked a grin.

"Well, I **do** try. Dumbledore said that our home was just a little too conspicuous, what with the neighbors and all. He even offered some gardening advice. It worked too, for a little while. And then, you know they just sorta stopped living…"

"Couldn't you charm them? He asked.

"No 'fraid not. No magic. That's the rules for us exiles. Come on in the kitchen, I may not be able to conjure a garden but I've never been known to make a bad pot of tea." She smiled and he felt like vomiting.

_For crying out loud you are no longer going through puberty! Vomiting is not the proper response to have when a woman smiles at you!_ He admonished himself.

They decided to discuss business in the comfort of the library. She led the way out of the kitchen, tea in hand, toward the library from which a pungent and unpleasant odor was emanating. Remus mentally berated her for leaving books to live in such a disgusting stench. What was it exactly? Something about that smell seemed familiar a charred burning… She quickly ran to a side room and promptly returned whipping out a can of "fresh mountain breeze" scented air spray. Once inside the room, she commenced spraying from one corner to the next. For the life of him, Remus could not figure out what had caused such an awful smell. He looked surprised and she looked embarrassed.

"You'll understand when you have children," she explained matter of factly. "Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about…" she began nervously. Remus was sure his brain would pop a gasket, he mentally kicked himself for letting his mind worm its way into the gutter. "Children I mean. Mine. And my husband's. Hello, Remus still with me?" She asked in light of his spaced out look. She **thought** he looked confused, he **hoped **he didn't look like he was thinking anything too pervy.

"Yes. Kids. Yours. And your husband's, to whom you are happily married, gotcha."

"Well, yeah we are happy, er…" She suddenly looked like she regretted enlisting Dumbledore's help. Remus looked like he was going to be physically ill.

"My daughter," she began. "Is ten years old. She will be turning eleven in three months, which means she will be old enough to attend Hogwarts this year if Hogwarts is still an option…"

"What do you mean if? Dumbledore would never allow the school to close." Admittedly, the idea frightened him.

"No, not willingly, but the way things are with You-Know-Who he may not have a choice or Dumbledore may not think it's safe enough for us to return to our old identities. In any event she may not be able to go to school. That's where you come in."

"Me? How?" This whole conversation wasn't making a whit of sense to him.

"These days, it's not safe to be completely uneducated in the ways of Defense Against the Dark Arts. I want her to have a little bit of experience, just to be safe. And if circumstances prevent her going to school as planned then at least she'll be somewhat prepared," she finished all in one breath so as not to give him a chance to interrupt her.

"I don't have any expertise in Defense Against the Dark Arts. I wouldn't know what I'm doing." He was desperately fumbling for an excuse. This is what Dumbledore had in mind? This was crazy.

"Remus come on, I remember how you were in school, even if you've chosen to block it out," She teased. "Your head always in a book you practically lived at the library. And if I remember correctly you scored quite high on your DADA test didn't you?

"That doesn't qualify me to be a teacher!" Remus was embarrassed to realize that his voice was rising in volume with every word. So, he decided to change tact. "I thought you said that you couldn't _do_ any magic while you're in hiding." There, that aught to put an end to this foolishness. Unluckily for Remus, she was totally prepared.

"No, _Tom_ and _I_ aren't allowed to do any magic. _We _are a registered Wizard and Witch. Our daughter is not." She said with a smile of triumph.

"What about Restrictions on Underage Sorcery?" Remus shot back boldly.

"Dumbledore has a plan," she said flatly, victory shimmering in her eyes, as if that was the final word. It was. Remus couldn't think of an adequate reply, he very much wanted to trust Dumbledore no matter how crazy the whole idea seemed.

Remus emitted a long defeated sigh. He had a couple of options here. He could one, trust Dumbledore and have his first paying job in months. Or two, he could ask Sirius if he could sleep on his couch again while mooching his food.

Surrender. "Ughh," he said, glumly. "Before you declare me God's gift to babysitters I think that there is something that we should discuss…"

Marlene was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. She had him, he was going to agree. In her exuberance she reached up and hugged Remus fiercely around the neck. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" she sang. "Remus you have no idea how important this is to Tom and I, how badly we need this."

"Need what, a babysitter?" he teased.

"Don't be ridiculous, she far too old for a babysitter," Marlene replied, slightly indignant. Remus sniffed. the terrible scent he had smelled when he first entered the room was still remotely recognizable underneath the heavy cloaking of air freshener. He cocked an eyebrow.

"Oh no?" he asked Marlene skeptically.

"OK OK, I get your point. She just needs… a little supervision that's all. The point is you need a job and I need an employee, we can make this work. Remus frowned. It was now or never. He had to tell her about his Lycanthropy. She'd find out sooner or later anyway.

"Seriously, Marlene before we go any further with this there really is something important I need to discuss with you," he said gravely. If she noticed his change of mood it didn't show.

"Remus," she said with a sad, yet encouraging smile. "Dumbledore trusts you and so do I." _What does that mean? Does she know something?_ he wondered anxiously. She continued on, speaking quickly. "Whatever it is can wait until later, tomorrow after work perhaps? You can start tomorrow can't you?" she asked excitedly. "What do you think?"

"I think we're gonna get arrested."

"Well good then we have an accord," she said holding out her hand.

Normally Remus would have insisted on telling her the truth immediately. Experience had taught him that rejection right off the bat was a hell of easier than being fired later on down the road. For some reason however, he couldn't bring himself to press the matter. A job staring tomorrow? Maybe things were starting to look up. Remus made a silent promise to kiss Dumbledore the next time he saw him. Well, maybe not kiss him exactly…Remus shook the very idea from his head. Something still didn't seem quite right…

"Can I ask you some questions first? What with you being my future employer and all,"

"Certainly, fire away."

"Honestly, we could be thrown in jail for this couldn't we? I mean, teaching a child DADA outside of a safe learning environment, that's got to be illegal right?

"Probably."

"This is kind of dangerous huh?"

"You'll probably die in the attempt," she replied with a grin.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?"

"Absolutely," she said mischievously. "Now can I ask you some questions, you know since you'll be looking after my only child and all."

"Oh, ah Sure," he said, not entirely sure he liked where this was going.

"Are you prone to drunken rages?"

_What kind of question is that?_ He wondered. Fine, if she wasn't going to be mature about this neither was he.

"Only around Sirius."

"Ah the infamous Sirius Black. Well that's perfectly understandable. Any addictions I should know about."

"Does reading count as a drug?"

"Rowdy girlfriends?" Marlene cocked an eyebrow.

_Mayday, mayday it's a trap do not, I repeat, do not take the bait…_ warned Remus' subconscious.

"What the hell kind of question is that?" Remus snapped. After all, you're in hiding…"

"Exile."

"Whatever. The point is it's not exactly like I'll be inviting girls over for a go on the couch if that's what you're worried about." Remus mentally kicked himself. Perhaps if he hadn't had been staring at the lovely long legs of his school boy crush, he wouldn't have been quite so sensitive to that particular question.

"Whoa! I was kidding only kidding. Couch huh?" she was positively beaming with good natured mischief. Remus decided he must have set a record for most shades of red a person's skin could possibly go through all in about ten seconds.

"Well I guess my baby will be safe and sound with you. Why don't you come meet her?" and with that, Marlene practically skipped down the hallway to her daughter's room.

"Except on full moons…he replied ominously, all the playful banter forgotten. Not that it mattered, she was already well out of earshot.

"Remus, I would like you to meet my daughter Vestra McKinnon…I mean McGivens."

**There it is chapter 2! I hope things are making a little more since now. Please review. You have no idea how much I appreciate constructive criticism.**


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